MPH , BA , ATCL
Assistant Research Fellow: He Kāinga Oranga | Housing and Health, New Zealand Centre for Sustainable Cities research programmes, University of Otago, Wellington
Contact details
Email rachel.dohig@otago.ac.nz
Research interests and activities
Rachel works between housing and energy poverty research, with a particular emphasis on working with the public housing community.
Her Master’s thesis explored the experiences of public housing tenants during COVID-19 and the public health and social measures enacted in response. Alongside her focus on housing equity Rachel has a deep interest in communication, and how we most effectively communicate our results and projects with participants, community groups, industry, and policy makers alike.
Publications
O'Sullivan, K. C., Dohig, R. K., Chen, Z., Jiang, T., Pierse, N., Riva, M., & Das, R. R. (2025). Heating up, cooling off: Exploring cooling behaviours at home in Aotearoa New Zealand. Energy Research & Social Science, 125, 104128. doi: 10.1016/j.erss.2025.104128 Journal - Research Article
O'Sullivan, K. C., Buchanan, M., Leigh, L., Dohig, R. K., Pehi, T., Jenkins, M., Pierse, N., … Fraser, B. (2025). Working with community research partners to undertake sensitive public health interviews: A qualitative protocol to enhance rigour and safety. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 24. doi: 10.1177/16094069251337204 Journal - Research Other
Chen, Z., O'Sullivan, K. C., Dohig, R. K., Pierse, N., Jiang, T., Riva, M., & Das, R. (2025). Identifying summer energy poverty and public health risks in a temperate climate. Climate Risk Management, 48, 100698. doi: 10.1016/j.crm.2025.100698 Journal - Research Article
Dohig, R. K., O'Sullivan, K. C., Desmarais, A.-M., & Bierre, S. (2025). Staying cool at home: Cooling practices, barriers, and possibilities for disabled people's experiences of managing summer heat in Aotearoa New Zealand. Energy Research & Social Science, 120, 103895. doi: 10.1016/j.erss.2024.103895 Journal - Research Article
O'Sullivan, K., Dohig, R., Watt, R., Buchanan, M., Pehi, T., & Squire, P. (2024). How can not-for-profit electricity retail contribute to wellbeing? A case study of Toast. Proceedings of the 18th Otago Energy Research Centre (OERC) Annual Conference: Our Changing Relationship with Energy. Retrieved from https://www.otago.ac.nz/oerc/symposia Conference Contribution - Published proceedings: Abstract